Tutors / Pamela Petro & Kumari Tilakawardane

On this weekend course, we’ll explore the subject of home, and the Welsh concept of hiraeth, the longing for an ideal home, or the keen awareness of not feeling at home in time, place, or even yourself—through creative non-fiction. Both tutors have written passionately about home and hiraeth. Kumari, a young Welsh-Sri Lankan writer, has explored being in-between homes, and Pamela, an American who feels most at home in Wales, has recently explored the subject in her new book The Long Field.

Writers of essays and memoirs use the same craft tools as fiction writers, including description, scene and dialogue, reflection, summary, and exposition to tell a gripping story. We’ll explore these techniques and use them to tell our stories and to describe what home means to us: whether a place, feeling, a person, a season. Using short successful readings from non-fiction writing about home, prompts and tasks will be offered to spark ideas for new work.